Secret Santa
by NaruDeeds
Summary: Naruto and Sakura are each other's secret Santas, and neither is happy with the gift they got the other. Can they do something about it before it's too late? (This story is for Heaven & Earth's Winter Contest)


Here's a oneshot written for Heaven and Earth's winter contest! The main prompt is "Secret Santa" but it hits on a few others as well.

[insert standard disclaimer about not owning Naruto here]

Enjoy!

* * *

"Crap crap crap crap!" Naruto muttered as he walked around his apartment in an ever-increasing panic. "Think damnit!"

He looked down at his couch where a messily wrapped package was laying with the words, "To: Sakura, From: Your Secret Santa" written on it.

"Sakura isn't going to want to get this from me!" Naruto whined out loud to nobody. If Naruto had known how much stress this secret Santa mess was going to bring him, he would not have been so gung ho about it the second Ino suggested they all do it this year.

If he had known how much stress this secret Santa mess was going to bring him, he would not have spent practically an entire night cheering when he drew Sakura's name. Whoever said hindsight is 20/20 was a genius...

Naruto bought the messily wrapped package laying on his couch without even thinking about it. He just saw the item wrapped within and instantly thought of Sakura. He didn't really think much of it until the Secret Santa party neared. The closer the party got, the more critical he became of his gift.

And that's where he found himself today; the day of the Secret Santa party, cursing himself for buying Sakura a gift that was just so... inappropriate! She would have one of two reactions when she opened it...

Reaction one - surprised look on her face, followed by embarrassment... And since the only way Sakura knew to deal with embarrassment was through violence, that meant he would be punched through a wall.

Reaction two - surprised look on her face, followed by white, hot anger. She would yell about the gift being a terrible joke and then... well she would punch him through a wall.

Naruto groaned out loud. If he didn't think of something else to get her quickly he was going to need to wear a helmet to the party tonight, because he was going to get punched through a freaking wall!

"Why the hell do we even have to reveal who we are when they open our gifts anyways?" Naruto complained to his empty apartment. "It's secret Santa, why can't we just stay secret?"

He racked his brain for any idea that would be a more appropriate gift for Sakura, but he couldn't think of anything. As inappropriate is the gift would be coming from him, his gift was still perfect for her.

"Damnit!" Naruto swore. He grabbed a cloak and quickly threw it on. Maybe he could find something in the market that he could give to Sakura and NOT get punched through a wall...

* * *

"Crap crap crap crap!" Sakura swore as she paced around her apartment in an ever-increasing panic. "Think damnit!"

She looked down at her couch where a neatly wrapped package with a red bow was laying with the words, "To: Naruto, From: Your Secret Santa" written on it.

She had been excited when Ino had the idea for their group to do Secret Santas this year, and she had been even more excited when she drew Naruto. He was perhaps one of the easiest people to buy a gift for, mainly because no matter what it was, he was ecstatic to receive it. She had seen the guy go nuts over just getting a pair of socks in Christmases past.

She knew exactly why every gift he received excited him though. He wasn't spoiled with gifts during his horrific childhood. Even though they were both 23 now and he had been lauded as the village hero for years, receiving gifts was still a foreign idea to him since he had spent more of his life so far not receiving them.

So Sakura sat down and made the first thing that came to mind for Naruto without a second thought. She didn't think much about his gift until the Secret Santa party neared. The closer the party got, the more critical she became of her gift.

And that's where she found herself today; the day of the Secret Santa party, cursing herself for making Naruto a gift that was just so... plain! She knew that a big grin would envelop his face when he opened it, and he would thank her profusely... but he deserved better.

She should be able to give him a better gift, she knew him better than anyone else! She had a golden opportunity in front of her to show a man that she cared very deeply for how important he was to her... And what does she go and do?

Sakura eyed the neatly wrapped package on her couch with an angry look. She makes him _that_.

"Way to go Sakura... He's going to be sooo impressed when you have to reveal yourself as his secret Santa." She muttered out loud to her empty apartment.

She racked her brain for any idea that would be a more appropriate gift for Naruto, but she couldn't think of anything. As plain as this gift was, it was something he needed.

"Damnit!" Sakura swore. She grabbed a cloak and quickly threw it on. Maybe she could find something in the market that she could give to Naruto that showed him how deeply she cares for him...

* * *

Naruto was beginning to become more and more panicked with each step he took. There was nothing..._nothing_ in the market that he would choose over his gift to Sakura.

"Might as well buy a helmet while I'm here..." Naruto mumbled dejectedly. There was no way around it, he was going to be punched through a wall tonight.

"What do you need a helmet for Dickless?" A strangely monotonous voice asked causing Naruto to jump in surprise.

"Stop sneaking up on me Sai!" Naruto groaned.

"I shouldn't be able to sneak up on a ninja with detection skills as advanced as yours." Sai noted with his odd smile present on his face.

"Well I'm a little distracted right now!"

"Oh?"

"I don't want to talk about it..." Naruto mumbled. Sai understood emotions and social issues about as well as a brick. He was probably the worst person to talk to about this... if Naruto even wanted to talk about it in the first place.

"Well my books tell me that I should press when a friend says that." Sai replied. "So why don't you tell me."

"No thanks."

"I insist. If you would like, I can ask you what is troubling you in a much louder voice. I'm sure all the people in the market here will instantly gather and try to help you." Sai said, knowing full well that even after all these years, Naruto still wasn't completely comfortable with being so famous.

"Do that and I'll burn your damn book collection." Naruto threatened.

"That would require you going to the library, so I'm not worried." Sai quipped. "Now let me ask this question again, except a little louder..."

"Jeez you're a pain!" Naruto sighed. "Fine. I'm Sakura's secret Santa, and I bought her a gift that made me think of her without really thinking about it. BUT it's a gift that is not appropriate coming from me. She's going to kill me when she opens it."

"Ah, I see I will need to refer to Jiraiya-sama's books for this." Sai noted.

"What? Why the hell..."

"So you bought Sakura some sexy underwear?"

"WHAT?!" Naruto yelled in shock. "Do I look like I have a death wish?"

"You know, you shouldn't really be worried. In fact, you should be excited. In Jiraiya-sama's works the ladies always respond favorably when they receive sexy underwear. I would figure you would be excited for that outcome given your feelings for Sakura."

"I didn't get her sexy underwear!" Naruto hissed in an attempt to quiet his socially inept friend down. The last thing he needed was a rumor going around that he bought Sakura sexy underwear... She would murder him, find a way to revive him and then murder him again if she caught wind of that!

"And why the hell did you read Pervy Sage's books? They're nothing but smut, and are definitely not realistic."

"Kakashi's always reading them and he suggested I read them as well. He also told me they should help me understand interactions between men and women."

"Kakashi-sensei is a damn perv..." Naruto sighed. "No Sai, do not use Pervy Sage's books to understand women. If you do what they do in those damn books you're going to end up in the hospital."

"Interesting... But I don't see how you would know."

"Come again?" Naruto asked with an annoyed look on his face.

"Well... you're still single and have been single your entire life to my knowledge. So how would you know?"

"Way to kick a man when he's down Sai." Naruto rolled his eyes. "This is why I didn't want to talk to you about this."

"Then why don't you tell me why you're out here if you already have a gift for Sakura?" Sai asked. After years of trying to better his social interactions, he was getting better at being able to tell when a conversation needed to be shifted.

"I'm trying to find a gift for Sakura that won't get me beat up."

"I see... Well why don't you get her some sexy..."

"Sai!" Naruto groaned. "What did I just tell you?"

"Right... Jiraiya-sama's works should not be used to understand women. Ok then... how about a box of chocolates?"

"A.) I'm not her boyfriend. B.) It's not Valentine's Day, and C.) She prefers fruity sweets to chocolate sweets anyways."

"I see... How about a gift certificate to her favorite clothing store then?"

"Way too impersonal."

"A cookbook?"

"Why would I get Sakura a cookbook?" Naruto asked with an eyebrow raised.

"She's an atrocious cook, a cookbook might help."

"Again Sai, I'm trying _not_ to get clobbered with this gift." Naruto rolled his eyes. "How do you think Sakura would react to me giving her a cookbook because she's a crappy cook?"

"Hmm... I see your point." Sai agreed. "She really doesn't react well when you point out her flaws. She put me in the hospital last week when I called her ugly again."

"You really should stop doing that you know. Besides, she's not ugly! She's the most beautiful girl in the world!"

"You should tell her that."

"For the last time Sai... I'm trying not to get my ass kicked by her tonight!"

"Of course. How about some new kunai then?"

"Again, too impersonal."

"Well I'm out of ideas. You're screwed aren't you?"

"Thus why I'm buying a helmet." Naruto sighed.

"I would stay and help you, but I need to go home make a gift for the person I got for Secret Santa. Good luck in finding something to save your ass."

"Thanks."

"If I may ask, what did you get for Sakura that's going to make her so angry?"

Naruto looked around the market suspiciously, before whispering what he got Sakura in Sai's ear.

"That's going to make her mad? Strange, I think that would be a good gift. In Jiraiya-sama's books that would definitely get you..."

"STOP REFERENCING THAT PERVY SAGE'S BOOKS SAI!" Naruto yelled with an exasperated look on his face, causing all of the people in the market to look at the pair.

"It's a fine gift... and it's perfect for her. It's just not appropriate coming from me, ya know?"

"I do not... But according to you I've been using the wrong books as a guide for understanding women. So I could be missing something."

"You are." Naruto assured. "I'll see you tonight Sai." Sai waved goodbye and Naruto sighed for the hundredth time so far in the day.

"Guess I should go to the adventure store... They'll have the highest quality helmets..."

* * *

Sakura was beginning to become more and more panicked with each step she took. There was nothing..._nothing_ in the market that she would choose over her gift to Naruto.

"I might as well buy some generic crappy Christmas card while I'm down here." Sakura mumbled dejectedly. There was no way around it, Naruto was getting a plain Christmas gift tonight...

"And why's that Sakura?" A feminine voice asked, causing Sakura to jump.

"Damnit Ino! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"If you were an elite ninja I shouldn't have been able to." Ino teased.

"Keep talking and I'll show you who the elite ninja is!" Sakura threatened.

"Pssh. You know I'd wipe the floor with you." Ino smirked. Even after all of these years, the two of them still had an air of competitiveness between them. "But enough of that, why don't you answer my question? You've never been the kind of person who is satisfied with a generic crappy Christmas card."

"I don't want to talk about it..." Sakura mumbled. Truthfully, Ino might actually be able to help... but Ino was also the gossip queen. If she talked to Ino about this it would only be a matter of time before Naruto heard about her feeling bad about getting him a plain gift... But she didn't even want to talk about this in the first place! Who wants to admit out loud that she got her best friend a crappy gift?

"Like I care." Ino huffed. "Talk."

"Not a chance Pig!"

"So that's how you're going to be eh?" Ino smirked. She knew Sakura very well, and happened to know that Sakura hated being the center of attention when she was down about something. It was because of her obsession with not being perceived as weak.

"Oh Sakura Haruno," Ino said loudly in a dramatic voice. "What is bothering you? What has you, SAKURA HARUNO, feeling so... MMPH!"

"Quiet damnit!" Sakura hissed with her hands over Ino's mouth. "You will spend your Christmas in the hospital if you try that again!"

"Yeah right. You know if you put someone in the hospital Tsunade is going to make you work on Christmas." Ino snorted.

"You're such a pain!" Sakura sighed, knowing full well that Ino was right. "Fine, but this stays between us."

"Of course!"

"I mean it Ino!" Sakura growled.

"Ok, ok! Relax Sakura!"

"So I'm Naruto's secret Santa, and I made him a gift without really thinking about it. The problem is that the gift is plain, and kind of crappy. A gift is supposed to let someone know that you care about them, but the gift I made for him won't do that at all..."

"I see..." Ino said with a thoughtful look on her face. "Go on."

"There isn't anything else to tell. I made Naruto a crappy gift, now I'm here in the market trying to find him something better."

"You honestly think that Naruto would prefer anything you can find here in the market to something you made him?"

"You haven't seen what I made Ino! It's not that great! It's nothing special!"

"If you made it, it will be special to him and you know it."

"That's because he's an idiot." Sakura sighed, although a small smile was on her face because she knew Ino was right. "But it doesn't matter if he likes it or not, because he deserves something better!"

"That's stupid, but fine. Let's brainstorm... How about some Ichiraku coupons?"

"Ugh... as if he needs any more reason to eat ramen. No thanks, I would like to NOT contribute to his early demise due to clogged arteries."

"Touche." Ino chuckled. "What about a nice bracelet?"

"When have you ever seen Naruto wear a bracelet?"

"A fancy necklace?"

"When have you ever seen Naruto wear anything fancy?"

"A necklace?"

"You're really getting into dangerous territory with these jewelry suggestions Ino." Sakura groaned. "He's not my boyfriend. Friends don't really get each other jewelry."

"But you wouldn't be opposed to him being your boyfriend, and you know he's crazy about you." Ino pressed.

"I wouldn't be opposed to that at all... But he's not crazy about me anymore Ino. You didn't see his reaction all those years ago in Iron Country."

"His idiot'ness has rubbed off on you Sakura." Ino sighed as she slapped her head. "A blind person could see how crazy he is about you."

"Well that blind person didn't see his reaction in Iron Country either then!" Sakura huffed. "Next suggestion!"

"A new shirt?"

"Too impersonal."

"Some new kunai?"

"See my last response."

"Some lingerie for yourself?"

"Ino..." Sakura growled.

"I think he would like that present Sakura." Ino teased.

"YOU DAMN PERVERTED PIG!" Sakura roared, causing all of the people in the market to look at the pair. Working on Christmas or not, Ino was going to the hospital!

"I was just joking Sakura, relax." Ino chuckled. "But seriously, if you're so worried about your gift not properly conveying just how important he is to you then why don't you just tell him?"

"I... it's just not an option ok? He doesn't have a crush on me anymore, so if I said the wrong thing, I could screw up our friendship."

"Yep, Naruto's idiot'ness is definitely rubbing off on you." Ino sighed.

"Keep talking Ino." Sakura warned as she cracked her knuckles. "Just don't complain about how it turns out."

"Oh Sakura, what ever will I do with you?" Ino chuckled. "Fine fine Forehead. I need to go start preparing for the party tonight or else I would stay and try to help you with your stupid quest. I'll see you tonight!"

"It's not stupid!" Sakura whined after Ino.

"Guess I should go to the general store... They have the most generic and awful Christmas cards. If I'm going to give Naruto a crappy gift, I might as well go all out and give him a crappy card as well..."

* * *

Naruto was glumly walking around the market trying to think of a way to wear the helmet he was currently carrying without having to explain why he was wearing it... He thought about using a henge, but he was going to a party with a bunch of ninjas, one of them was bound to notice he was henged and ask why.

His thoughts were interrupted by the voice of the woman who would be punching him through a wall this evening.

"Naruto?" Naruto glanced over his shoulder to see Sakura looking at him with a smile on her face, and some kind of Christmas card in her hand. "Why do you have a helmet?"

"This?" Naruto raised his helmet. "Umm... well... The Adventure Store had a really good deal on these and I figured it would be good to own a helmet if I ever decided I wanted to uh... go rock climbing!"

"Why would you want to go rock climbing when you can just walk up a mountain?"

"Exercise?"

"Ok..."

"Buying a late Christmas card?" Naruto asked, pointing to the card in her hand. He did not want Sakura to probe any further about the helmet...

"Oh... eh... yeah." Sakura mumbled as she hid the card away. "So did you come to the market just to buy your helmet?"

"Hehe, no. I came to do some last minute Christmas shopping. You?"

"Same. Why don't we shop together?" Sakura asked as a plan formed in her head. If she went shopping with Naruto, she could see what he liked in the market, then buy it right before the party. She wouldn't have to give him such a crappy gift!

"I will never pass on spending more time with you Sakura." Naruto smiled, as he mentally cheered. Sakura was sure to see something she liked in the market while they were doing their last minute shopping together. He would buy whatever she wanted right before the party, thus buying her a more appropriate gift and then wouldn't need the helmet he had in hand!

Sakura smiled at Naruto's response and expertly kept herself from blushing. "Well let's go then. Where to first?"

"I don't know... I was just wandering and hoping something would catch my eye. You choose."

"I was doing the same thing." Sakura chuckled.

"Great minds, eh?"

"Oh please don't compare my mind to yours Naruto." Sakura teased, although she knew full well he was far more intelligent than most people believed.

"That hurts Sakura." Naruto said as he dramatically placed his hand over his heart.

"Truth hurts." Sakura chimed. "But since neither of us have anywhere specific to shop, let's keep wandering."

"Sounds good." Just as Naruto agreed, a cold gust of air blew through the market place causing both Naruto and Sakura to shiver.

"First let's get something to warm us up." Naruto led the way to a small drink stand and paid for two large cups of hot chocolate, despite Sakura's protests at him paying.

The two began mindlessly wandering in the market, using the warmth of the hot chocolate to resist the random cold gusts of wind, and both secretly watching the other hoping for a gift idea. They were both so busy watching each other, that neither really paid attention to anything in the market... and as a result, neither of their plans were going very well.

"Soo..." Sakura drawled. As much as she enjoyed just mindlessly walking around with Naruto like this, she was starting to get desperate. She had enough of carefully watching him to see what he liked and decided to be a little more direct. "If you could have one thing out of all the shops here, what would it be?"

"Eh?" Sakura's question caught Naruto off guard - not because of the nature of the question, but because he had been so focused on watching her that he hadn't been prepared for any sort of speech.

"It wasn't a complicated question Naruto."

"Umm... ramen?"

"Always ramen with you." Sakura sighed.

"It's soooo good! And I don't really need anything. My apartment is fine, I have plenty of ninja tools..." Naruto's eyes suddenly widened as he saw an opportunity to figure out a better gift for Sakura. He could turn her own question around on her!

"How about you?" Naruto mentally patted himself on the back. This would be way easier than secretly watching her eyes like a hawk.

"That's a good question." Sakura grumbled, her hopes at finding Naruto a better gift now dashed.

"That's why I asked it!"

"Honestly Naruto, I have no idea."

"Oh come on! There has to be something you have your eye on!" Naruto pressed. This was his last chance to avoid Sakura's fist later tonight!

"Nope!"

"No fair, I answered for you." Naruto whined.

"You told me ramen." Sakura shot back.

"It's the truth!"

"That's unhealthy and it's not a gift!"

"Who said anything about gifts? You just said one thing from any shop that I wanted."

"It's the freaking Christmas season! I think it was implied!"

"Well it doesn't change my answer anyways."

"You... you really are a goofball." Sakura smiled.

"Call me what you want, I know what good food is!"

"Of course you do Naruto." Sakura rolled her eyes. "You know... we've been wandering for a while now and neither of us has found anything. Want to go get lunch somewhere instead? Somewhere nice and warm?"

"Ichira..."

"No." Sakura cut Naruto off before he could finish. "No ramen. A real restaurant where you can eat something that won't kill you."

"But ramen makes me strong!"

"And it makes me fat. No thanks."

"You're not fat Sakura! You're beautiful!"

"Flattery will get you nowhere." Sakura replied, although she couldn't completely hide her smile. "And I'm not fat because I don't eat ramen!"

"Fine. No ramen. Is it a date?"

"Hmm..." Sakura tapped her finger against her chin, as if she were deep in thought. "Well... I suppose it is Christmas, and as long as you're paying... Sure, it's a date."

"Really?" Naruto gasped. Sakura had never said yes before!

"Really." Sakura figured if she was going to give Naruto such a crappy gift, the least she could do was go out on a date with him.

* * *

Sakura was standing back in her apartment staring down at the neatly wrapped package that she would be giving to Naruto tonight. Lunch with Naruto had been a lot of fun, but both of them went their separate ways after.

She glanced at her clock, saw that the party was going to be starting soon and scooped the package up with a heavy sigh.

"I am the worst best friend ever..." Sakura groaned before heading out.

* * *

Naruto was standing back in his apartment staring down at the messily wrapped package he was going to be giving Sakura tonight. Lunch with Sakura had been absolutely amazing, and she didn't hit him when he jokingly said they should do it again sometime... she hadn't said yes either, but he would take what he could get.

He glanced at his clock, saw that the party was going to be starting soon and scooped up the package with a heavy sigh.

"I am so dead..." Naruto groaned before heading out.

* * *

Ino's apartment was festive, and Sakura found herself a little jealous of her friend's decorating abilities. The fireplace was crackling and emitting a gentle glow, tall red candles were lit throughout the apartment, and there were small snowman figurines scattered randomly about. To top it all of, Ino had strewn tinsel and garland in every nook and crevice. Every single inch of Ino's apartment seemed to be decorated for Christmas.

Sakura's eyes went to the modestly sized Christmas tree in the corner, decorated with silver and gold orbs, strung with vibrant multicolored lights and topped off by an angel. Her eyes weren't focused on the tree itself however, they were more focused on what was beneath the tree - all the secret Santa presents.

She grimaced as she thought about later when they all revealed themselves to each other and everyone opened their presents. Naruto would be happy with her present of course, because he's Naruto... but she and everyone else would know he deserved better. The neatly wrapped package that she had brought sat there without anything else. She couldn't bring herself to add the horribly generic card she bought. His gift sucked enough as is, it didn't need a crappy card to bring it down further.

"Sakura, you have got to try this sake Ino bought!" Tenten said, snapping Sakura's attention back to the party. She smiled at her friend and accepted the saucer. She would worry about her crappy gift later; she was here to have fun with her friends.

* * *

Naruto couldn't help but be impressed with Ino as his eyes swept across her apartment. He wouldn't say it out loud, because he didn't want his guy friends making fun of him, but the place looked absolutely beautiful. Ino's apartment was exactly how Naruto pictured people's houses were when he used to dream about having a real Christmas as a kid. He even noted that Ino had subtly placed some mistletoe in a spot that people were sure to end up standing under.

His eyes landed on Ino's Christmas tree and traveled downwards to stare at all the secret Santa gifts. In those gifts was a messily wrapped package that was going to get him punched through a wall...

He was not looking forward to later when they all revealed themselves and everyone opened their presents. He couldn't think of a way to wear his helmet without having everyone ask about it, so it was sadly sitting on his counter at home. He started looking at each of Ino's walls and tried to determine which one was the thinnest... Whatever one looked to be the thinnest would be the one he stood in front of. That way it would hurt a little less when Sakura clobbered him for his inappropriate gift...

"Stop staring at the walls and try some of this sake Naruto!" Kiba said, snapping Naruto's attention back to the party. he smiled at his friend and accepted the saucer. He would worry about Sakura killing him later; he was here to have fun with his friends.

* * *

"Alright I'm up!" Kiba announced with a slightly drunken grin. After a couple of hours of drinking and hanging out, the group decided it was time to open secret Santa gifts. Both Naruto and Sakura were relieved that the other had not opened their secret Santa gifts yet, but they also both knew they couldn't hide for much longer. Other than Kiba, they were the only two who had not opened their gifts.

"So whose my secret Santa? You Naruto? Or maybe Sakura?"

"I'm your secret Santa." Sai said with his slightly eery smile. "I think you're going to like this."

Kiba took grabbed the package and quickly tore it open.

"No way..." Kiba muttered as he looked down at Sai's present. His body was hunched over it, so no one else could get a clear look at it.

"Sai... did you make this?"

"I did!"

"This is... AWESOME!" Kiba grinned as he held up a framed portrait of him uppercutting a tyrannosaurus rex that was wearing a ninja headband. There were other random dinosaurs wearing ninja headbands lying on the ground, seemingly already defeated by Kiba.

"WHOAH! THAT IS AWESOME SAI!" Naruto yelled.

"I wanted to draw you something, but I was having a little difficulty coming up with a good idea. Then I remembered a book saying to use whatever was around you to inspire you. So I looked at my ninja headband, and the book on dinosaurs I was currently reading and decided to try it out. I'm glad you like it."

"Like it? I love this thing! It's going smack dab in the middle of my living room!"

"Well... it will go up in our apartment Kiba." Hinata quietly said. They had moved in together a couple of months ago, and Hinata wasn't overly keen with a portrait of her boyfriend beating the crap out of ninja dinosaurs being the centerpiece of her living room... Her father already wasn't overly thrilled with their relationship... she didn't see that picture helping things at all.

"Yeah, the middle of our living room is in our apartment!"

"I don't know if the living room is the best spot for that Kiba." Hinata narrowed her eyes in warning.

"Ok, how about you go Naruto?" Ino interjected before Kiba could say anything stupid.

"Sure. I guess that means you're my secret Santa, ne Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked, seeing as they were the only two left.

"And looks like you're mine." Sakura replied with a nervous smile as she handed Naruto his gift. She couldn't believe she was actually going through with this... She was actually giving Naruto this crappy gift! She couldn't watch as Naruto opened it.

"Sakura...these are... did you make these?" Sakura mentally groaned. So even Naruto could see what a crappy gift it was...

"Eh... yeah. Well, I made a lot more of them... I'm not really good at knitting so it took me a lot of tries to make those... But you never wear a hat or scarf, and now that you no longer wear your jumpsuit, you need to. So I...eep!"

Sakura was cut off by Naruto suddenly lifting her off her feet. "THESE ARE SO GREAT! You're amazing Sakura!"

"They're nothing special." Sakura protested. "Put me down!"

Naruto quickly obliged and put her down. He put on the orange scarf and orange hat she knitted him with a giant grin on his face.

"These are perfect."

"They're not! They're just orange, I couldn't figure out how to do anything fancy with them. It's just a plain orange scarf, and a plain orange hat. They're really nothing amazing."

"You made them; they're perfect." Naruto countered.

"You...you're something else." Sakura sighed with a smile on her face. Even though she thought her gift sucked, it was hard to feel like she failed when she got that kind of reaction out of Naruto. The smile on his face as he played with the scarf made her smile grow even larger. "Just give me my present already baka."

Naruto's eyes snapped open and he gulped. He stealthily scooted himself so he was in front of what he deemed to be the thinnest wall and handed Sakura her present.

"One of these years I'm going to teach you how to wrap a present." Sakura teased.

"Right." Naruto nervously muttered as Sakura started to open the gift. He watched as her eyes widened and looked away, he knew what was going to come next.

"Naruto...You..."

Judging by the pause between Sakura's words Naruto guessed she was embarrassed, which meant her fist should be flying at his face any second now.

"This is beautiful." Sakura finally gasped as she held up a shiny silver necklace with a small, circular emerald framed by tiny sparkling diamonds. She vaguely noticed that all of her female friends were eying her necklace with envious looks.

"Yeah... I instantly thought of you when I saw it. It's nothing so flashy that you wouldn't be able to wear it often, and... I just thought you might like it." Naruto nervously replied. He was surprised that he hadn't been sent through a wall yet, but he knew it was just a matter of time.

"I love it..." Sakura breathed as she put the necklace on. She lunged forward, and much to Naruto's surprise, wrapped him in a tight hug.

"You do?"

Sakura nodded her head. "Of course... I just hope you didn't spend too much on it. All I did was buy the yarn for your gifts."

"You're not angry to get something like this...from me?"

"I think you win Secret Santa." Sakura flashed Naruto a smile. Before she could say anything else, Ino "accidentally" bumped into Sakura, sending both her and Naruto sprawling forward.

"Oh man, it looks like it's Naruto's lucky night!" Kiba whooped.

"Huh?" Naruto questioned, although he silently agreed. Here he was expecting to get punched through a wall, and instead, the girl of his dreams was hugging him.

"Yeah, what are you implying Kiba?" Sakura growled dangerously. If that jackass was insinuating that...

"Look up Sakura." Tenten smirked.

"Oh I am so envious of Naruto to be in such a spot with such a beautiful flower!" Lee said in a voice overflowing with enthusiasm.

Both Naruto and Sakura looked up to see the mistletoe that Ino had subtly placed hanging over them.

"Oh..." Naruto mumbled as realization hit him. "We can move real quick Sakura, you don't have to... you know...if...ah..."

"I think you've earned it." Sakura smiled softly at Naruto. "This will be my first kiss you know."

"Mine too..." Naruto and Sakura stared into each other's eyes, barely noticing all the others around them.

"Actually that is not correct." Shino spoke up. "Naruto your first kiss was with Sasuke."

"WHAT?! THAT DIDN'T COUNT!" Naruto yelled in protest as that horrible nightmare flashed through his mind, causing everyone to start laughing.

"Totally counts man. You gave your first kiss to a dude." Kiba laughed.

"BUT..."

"Shut up and kiss me Naruto." Sakura ordered, mercifully saving Naruto from further teasing.

"Do you mean it Sakura?"

"Of course I do. If you don't kiss me right now I'm going to punch you through a wall."

Naruto leaned down and pressed his lips against Sakura's and for a brief moment, neither of them noticed their friends. By the time they pulled away from each other, both were out of breath and wore extremely happy smiles on their faces.

"That was awesome..." Naruto gasped.

"Agreed." Sakura giggled. "Since we're still here under the mistletoe..."

"Oh no Forehead! You can't hog the mistletoe all night!" Ino suddenly grabbed Sakura's leg and pulled her backwards.

"Hey!" Sakura pouted.

"Listen, I made sure you two got each other for your secret Santas and then just pushed you under the mistletoe. I've helped you enough for now! It's my turn. Shikamaru get your ass under the mistletoe right now!"

"M-me?" Shikamaru asked with a surprised look on his face.

"Did I stutter?"

"This is just... you know..."

"Troublesome, right." Ino sighed as she grabbed his hand and pulled him under the mistletoe.

"I wasn't going to...MMPH!" Ino cut him off by quickly kissing him. When the two pulled apart, she grinned down at Sakura.

"See Forehead? This is how you show someone you like them. As you can see, it works much better than never telling him anything because you're convinced he doesn't like you, when he clearly does."

"You like me?" Naruto questioned with a surprised look on his face.

"Well I certainly don't hate you..." Sakura mumbled.

"Kami Sakura just freaking tell him!" Ino groaned. "Let me show you how it's done. Shikamaru, I like you and you like me, so you are now my boyfriend!"

"Now wait a..."

"Your turn Sakura!" Ino cut Shikamaru off.

Naruto stared at his beautiful teammate as she shyly looked up at him. He could hardly believe this was happening.

"Well... you see Naruto... I..."

"Just say it Sakura!" Ino groaned.

"I..."

"I agree with Ino, spit it out!" Tenten chimed in.

"I..."

"I don't think you have anything to be nervous about Sakura, he clearly loves you." Hinata said.

"I love you damnit!" Sakura suddenly blurted out. She quickly averted her eyes from Naruto out of sheer embarrassment. She couldn't believe she just gave into her friends egging on like that!

"You do?"

"Yeah..." Sakura nervously peered at Naruto; her heart practically leaped out of her chest when she saw the look on his face. His face was filled with joy and love.

"YOU ARE THE BEST SECRET SANTA EVER SAKURA!" Naruto yelled as he suddenly jumped up and dragged Sakura to her feet. He then proceeded to bump Ino and Shikamaru out of the way so he and Sakura were again under the mistletoe.

"I love you too by the way." Naruto leaned down and kissed his secret Santa for the second time that night.

"We're going to be spending a lot of time in this spot tonight aren't we?" Sakura teased when they broke apart.

"Damn straight, this is our spot now."

"No! No hogging the mistletoe!" Ino groaned as everyone started laughing.

* * *

This one was a lot of fun thanks to writing all the parallels between Naruto and Sakura =) I hope this winter finds you all well!

Do note that this is not my official Christmas fic this year, as I will be writing the third and final "All I Want for Christmas" story (titled "All They Want for Christmas") and releasing it on the 23, 24 and 25!

Feel free to review!


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